The new PA Distance Computer Science program is in full swing. The program, which was rolled out in the 2018-2019 school year, will build year-over-year by introducing new courses for various grade levels. PA Distance believes that computer science is for ALL students and our goal is to offer multiple computer science and technology courses to all students in grades K-12. The courses offered will provide students with the skills they need to succeed in this modern, technology-savvy world. The entire program, and the 13 courses it offers, will be fully implemented at PA Distance by the 2022-2023 school year.
Comprising PA Distance's Computer Science team is High School Principal, Ms. Crooks, Business-Technology Teachers, Mr. Gates and Ms. Azzaro, and elementary school teacher, Mr. Hughes who are all Computer Science certified.
"Students will gain skills in coding, explore career tracks they might never have considered, and equip themselves with the information and skills they need to navigate an increasingly complex world," Ms. Azzaro said.
Now that PA Distance students have had the opportunity to take some of these classes, we sat down with a few of the young scholars to hear about their experiences and their goals after graduation.
PA Distance senior, Dakota Burik, and 9th-grader, Evelina Manichkina, are currently taking Computer Science with Mr. Gates.
“I don’t know specifically what I want to do after graduation yet, all I know is I want to do something with computers,” he said. ”I love computers and I have all my life, I've built multiple computers for myself and friends, so definitely something in that field.”
“I’m taking computer science because I want to become a game designer in the future. It interested me because my mom used to study computers and she talked a lot about it,” Evelina, said. “My favorite part is how we’re going to be working on a game soon, we’re gonna take everything that we learned and put it together.”
7th-graders, Alexis Davenport and Kennedy Dawson are in Computing Ideas with Ms. Azzaro. This elective course is the first computer science course introducing the basics of programming with Karel the Dog, the basics of designing a web page, and how information and images are represented with computers. Students learn to code using blocks to drag and drop, but they can switch between blocks and text as desired. Students create a portfolio on the web of projects they build throughout the course.
“I thought it would be really cool to learn about computers since we use them so much,” Kennedy said. “We made websites and learned how to structure them and the HTML behind making them. It’s really fun.”
“Computing Ideas is my favorite class this year and I plan to take more Computer Science classes in high school,” Alexis said. “It’s my favorite because it’s the most fun and enjoyable. I love being able to create and style something and what was once a blank canvas into something incredible.”
With a unique focus on creativity, problem-solving, and project-based learning, the course also gives students the opportunity to explore several important topics of computing using their own ideas and creativity and develop an interest in computer science that will foster further endeavors in the field.
“I took Computing Ideas because the job I’m interested in the future has computers involved so I thought it would be a good experience, plus I was very interested in coding/being able to make a website,” Alexis explained.
“I want to be a professional Streamer when I graduate,” Alexis said. “A streamer is somebody who live streams video games, art, and other hobbies for a living. Kind of like a live tv show but it can vary for different interests.”
In addition to the in-depth computer science classes, PA Distance will offer other technology opportunities for students like classes for Web Design, Game Design, App Design, and Cyber Security.
"If a student is interested in any of these classes but isn't 100% sure they want to pursue computer science after graduation, we have options for them too," Mr. Gates explained. "Everyone can get involved, at any level, and that's the beauty of it."
Read about each of the Elementary, Middle School, and High School Computer Science and Technology Courses within each respective course catalog.